The injuries after the rollover in the Critérium Dauphiné are so great for Steven Kruijswijk that he can not participate in the Tour de France, which starts in nine days.
On your Twitter-konto writes the Dutchman, who came third in last year’s edition, that he can not participate because he has suffered a fracture in the shoulder and is suffering from a sore body.
Jumbo-Visma must thus manage without one of its most important help riders in the hunt for the overall winner.
– Steven has done everything he has been able to in recent months and sacrificed everything to get to the Tour de France in top form, but top sports are tough. It is a great disappointment that we can not follow the plan we have laid, says sports director Merijn Zeeman in a press release.
Replaced by Grondahl Jansen
The rider who will replace Kruijswijk, and become captain Primoz Roglic’s new helper, is Norwegian Amund Grøndahl Jansen. This is confirmed by Jumbo-Visma on his Twitter.
– Amund is well prepared and will provide maximum support to our captains and the team, says Zeeman.
The 26-year-old was at home in Norway to prepare for the NM when the team informed him that he had to be ready for the Tour de France, if Kruijswijk had to register a passport.
On Monday he went to France, on Wednesday he was told that he will be part of the Tour team.
– It’s a shame that Steven is not allowed to drive. He was part of a promising group of climbers, so it’s a shame he can not show up. But I am glad that I get the opportunity, says Grondahl Jansen to TV 2.
He is now in Tignes on altitude gathering to prepare for the race.
– I see this as a vote of confidence from the team. Jumbo-Visma has many riders who could have been brought in as a reserve, so now I just have to roll up my sleeves and show myself worthy of trust, he says.
New role
The Norwegian champion has cycled the two previous editions of the race, but was then primarily the driver for the star sprinter Dylan Groenewegen. This year, the Dutchman is not going to the Tour de France.
– What will be your role this year?
– I will replace Steven and do a job on the last mountain, he says and laughs.
– No, I’m a completely different type of rider. I will not replace him, I will do a completely different job. Together with Tony Martin, I will contribute on the surfaces and make sure to keep Primoz Roglic out of trouble.
Do not get your own chances
Grondahl Jansen points out that he goes to the Tour de France as a pure assistant rider, and will therefore not get chances to drive for his own results.
– The goal is to win the tour overall, whether it is Primoz or Tom Dumoulin, says the Norwegian.
– How would it have been to have on the CV?
– It would have been fun to be on the winning team. Not many people get to experience it. I will never win the Tour myself, so that is the closest I will come, he says.
– Tactically very wise
TV 2’s cycling expert, Johan Kaggestad, also believes that the withdrawal of Grøndahl Jansen is a great vote of confidence.
– Jumbo-Visma probably does not only have plans for an overall winner for Primoz Roglic. Wout van Aert will also win a number of stages, and Amund will be an important puller for van Aert. We last saw that in Milan-Sanremo, says Kaggestad, and continues:
– The team has realized that Grøndahl Jansen has skills that are very good. He is tactically very wise and can do a job for the captains of the lighter parties. This was fun.
He believes Jumbo-Visma has done the right thing in taking the 26-year-old on the Tour team, even though it is mainly as an assistant rider for Roglic.
– He gets a hard job, but we must not forget that van Aert is also one of the world’s best sprinters. Jumbo-Visma has an ambitious plan to win the Tour overall, but van Aert can also win the green points jersey. He is good enough for that, Kaggestad thinks.
May not defend the NM title
The selection for the Tour de France also means that Grøndahl Jansen will not have the opportunity to defend his NM gold from last year.
When the starting shot for this year’s Norwegian championship goes on Sunday, the reigning champion is still at training camp to prepare for the Tour de France.
– It’s the sour side of driving the Tour. I would have liked to have been in the National Championships and defended the jersey, because the course suits me well and I should have had great chances. So it’s sad. But fortunately there will be more NM, says Grøndahl Jansen, who thus will not ride the Tour de France in the Norwegian champion jersey he has cycled with in the last year.
– What is it like to receive the message about Tour participation so late?
– It does not have much to say. I always try to be in stable good shape throughout the year, so I could not have prepared so much better, he says, and emphasizes that the form is good.
– It should be, but at the same time I hope that it will rise. The tour can work as a good month of training, so I get in top shape for the classics. That’s my main goal this season.
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